Propst Farm
North Carolina
Find: Ruby, Sapphire (Corundum)
GPS: 35.59238, -81.25617 (approx. area)
Nearest city: Charlotte, NC
Recommended Vehicle: Any
Season: Spring and Fall are best. Summer is hot and humid. Access currently isn’t possible as of January 2026.
Summary:
The Propst Farm property is a fantastic surprise to anyone that enjoys a relxaxed day of rockhounding for loose gemstones.
Both varieties of corundum, rubies and sapphires have been found strewn across many properties near Hickory, NC. Known for its fluorescence, ruby (corundum) will glow a vibrant red under fluorescent light.
Good ones do turn up on the surface here from time to time. Prepare to get very dirty if you want to to try your hand and digging for ruby and sapphire.
I wasn’t able to find any by surface collecting and left with about a dozen after I dug 4 different holes.
This dig site has specific instructions: Please visit the “Propst Farm” Facebook Page linked here. You may need to apply to join first. Navigate to the ‘Featured’ tab to see contact information to schedule a dig.
The owner’s exact address and contact info has been intentionally withheld from this page, as it’s a residential property. He is very welcoming and helpful.
Video Guide
Check out the video to best see what can be found when exploring this spot.
3 Helpful Tools
D-Handle Shovel
A short handle shovel will help you dig holes. The soil here is exceptionally dense and packed hard.
Gad Bar
I used a gad bar to poke into the ground to feel for rocks prior to digging.
UV Flashlight
A flashlight will light up corundum (ruby & sapphire) to an exceptional, distinct red-orange color under a 365nm UV light.
I used a gad bar to try poking for stones. Ultimately, I don't know how helpful that really was.
A piece of mud that looks and feels deceptively like stone. They broke apart if squeezed hard.
There is running water and stand-up classifier screens at the site, which helped.
I found my largest and best piece of ruby/sapphire first, actually.
A close up. When fully cleaned, it looked to have a blue center and red outer layer. I loosely call it a sapphire.
A small piece of corundum with nice faces.
A large, but scraggly piece.
I eventually found many small flat ones all in some mud about 3 feet down.
Here's the kind of hole I dug.
I found it most comfortable to sit on the edge and use the mini shovel to get to the clay at the bottom.
An example of the fluorescence. These were taken with a 365nm longwave UV flashlight.